But as several folks at the technology, journalism and democracy conference noted, it’s all about protecting Republican incumbents rather than protecting the American people. After all, other MSM outlets, including the Wall Street Journal and the Los Angeles Times, published reports that the U.S. Treasury Department is monitoring international banking transactions.

So, consider the source. The feigned outrage is part of the GOP’s ongoing campaign to discredit the independent media (and here). Republicans have reached into their bag of tricks and pulled out the "liberal media" bogeyman in a desperate effort to cling to power in the face of widespread voter disapproval (and here).

June 29, 2006

Thomas, a bestselling author, was the featured speaker at the kickoff dinner of the Media Giraffe Project Summit. It was an inspired choice since she's been sticking her neck out in the pursuit of accuracy and government accountability for more than 60 years.

Actress Sheryl Lee Ralph, who's written and performs a one-woman show to raise awareness of the ongoing AIDS crisis, said:

The impact of HIV on the African American community cannot be ignored. We have to come together as a community and talk about this disease openly and honestly. National HIV Testing Day is one way to begin that dialogue. Silence will not heal you. Silence will kill you. Get checked. Get tested. Do what you have to do to break the silence about this disease and how it is affecting us as a people and community. AIDS affects us all.

African American women account for nearly 60 percent of all AIDS cases in women in the U.S., with a diagnosis rate 25 times that of white women and about four times that of Hispanic women. HIV/AIDS experts in the latest NWHRC Health Report blame “centuries of unequal treatment of women” within minority communities resulting in dangerously submissive behaviors as well as sexual abuse that leads to HIV infection.

African American women are most likely to be infected with HIV as a result of sex with men. They may not be aware of their male partners’ possible risks for HIV infection, such as unprotected sex with multiple partners, bisexuality, or injection drug use. In a study of HIV-infected persons, 34% of African American men who have sex with men reported having had sex with women, even though only 6% of African American women reported having had sex with a bisexual man (emphasis added).

The Magic Johnson Foundation is offering a free screening for folks in Los Angeles. To find a testing site near you, click here.

Atwater’s legendary race-baiting makes Karl Rove look like a Boy Scout.Still, Atwater loved black music.To this day, whenever I hear “Soul Finger” (and here), I flash back to January 1989 and the “Celebration for Young Americans,” a tribute to R&B during the American Bicentennial Presidential Inaugural.

Atwater, who chaired the event, had assembled an all-star band to perform the soul classic as George H.W. Bush walked out on the stage. Actually, it would be hard for me to forget that night since I have a commemorative poster in my home-office.

June 22, 2006

Jay-Z recently announced that he would lead a boycott of Cristal Champagne after the company’s managing director, Frédéric Rouzaud, described the hip-hop community’s embrace of the expensive drink as “unwelcome attention.” Rouzaud told The Economist:

That’s a good question, but what can we do? We can’t forbid people from buying it. I’m sure Dom Pérignon or Krug would be delighted to have their business.

Mind you, I have no beef with Cristal. Hell, I don’t even like champagne. And I certainly don’t support the rampant materialism and nouveau riche consumerism of many hip-hop artists.

But name-checks -- uncompensated product placements -- never made sense to me. While rappers give cachet and street cred to a wide range of products, the beneficiaries of their free advertising laugh all the way to the bank. Folks like Tommy Hilfiger, who reportedly sold his fashion label for $1.6 billion.

Let's hope that more rappers realize that there’s a reason it’s called the music business.

Over the past 25 years, the number of corporations that dominate television, movies, music, radio, cable, publishing and the Internet have dwindled from 50 to a handful of huge conglomerates. Relaxation of media ownership rules has repeatedly led to more corporate consolidation, less competition, and fewer local voices in the media. The FCC tried to change these same rules three years ago -- sparking an unprecedented public outcry. They're going to try to do it again in 2006. Unless our leaders hear from millions of concerned citizens, the FCC will give in to pressure from corporate media lobbyists, abandon the public interest and pursue policies that encourage even greater media concentration.

The StopBigMedia.com Coalition is mobilizing so the public can speak out before the FCC rules against our interests.

If you're tired of hundreds of channels and nothing on, put down the remote and get involved. For more info, click here.